1930 DRAFT PREVIEW
Here is a detailed look at the top prospects available for the 1930 Figment League Amateur Draft. It has already been widely talked about but the 1930 draft crop appears to be very weak, at least on the college side, and certainly pales in comparison with some of the high end talent we have seen over the past couple of drafts. There is good news, although not necessarily for teams picking high this year, as early indications are the 1931 and 1932 drafts both look to have some very good talent.
As I did last year, this preview will begin with a list of the top prospects at each position. I will rank the top 10 at each spot (15 outfielders) and provide a brief write-up on each of the top five. The series will finish with a mock draft of the first round.
OUTFIELD
It was tough finding 15 guys I liked for this list and, unlike previous years, the outfielders on the list were dominated by high school guys. The top two guys would be first rounders any year I think, but beyond that there is not a lot of elite talent, looks like some decent players but no stars.
1- RIP CURRY : George Fox Reds- The corner outfielder has been a three year starter for the Reds and hit .414 for his collegiate career including .398 this season. No other draft eligible outfielder with 150 or more career plate appearances has a higher OBP and his 7.2 career WAR ranks third among all draftees. I am concerned about his lack of power - just 19 homers in 143 games- and his small frame (5'10", 160 lbs) makes one wonder if the power will ever come. One other note is Curry is a two-way player and may actually be a better prospect as a pitcher. He was 11-1, 3.05 in 1929 but struggled on the mound this season.
2- AL HORTON: College of San Diego- A two year starter, Horton hit .378 in his college career and displayed plus defense in left field. He is also rated at CF but never played there. If he has the ability to play center that will only enhance his value. Was among the top five in draft eligible outfielders in WAR, slugging percentage, ops+ and stolen bases with 26 in his 100 game career.
3- BUTCH WALDRON: Lincoln HS- I was very high on Waldron two years ago and again last season but he had a disappointing senior year of HS, setting career lows in homers and all 3 slash categories. Looking at his full high school body of work he is a solid prospect, but looking at his senior season alone there are a lot of question marks - but the same can be said for most of the players in this draft.
4- JOE GOODWIN: Memphis HS- Goodwin's 29 career homers are the most of any high school draft eligible player. He was one of the few who had a better senior season than his earlier years with 15 homers in 40 games. Should perhaps be ranked ahead of Waldron as the top high school outfielder but I gave Waldron the nod based on being a CF rather than a corner guy that Goodwin is.
5- STAN WARE: Wilkes-Barre HS- Only played two seasons of high school ball but hit 14 homers in 40 games this year. Had the best career slugging percentage and OPS+ of any draft eligible high school outfielder.
6- PHIL DAWSON: Los Angeles HS
7- ROGER GRANT: Pierpont University
8- HARRY BUCKLEY: Ellery College
9- IKE BRIGGS: Grafton College
10- JERRY COLEMAN: St Matthew's College
11- LOU BALK: Boston HS
12- MILT COX: Somerville HS
13- JOHN WOODS: Birmingham HS
14- DAVE BASS: Spartanburg HS
15- BILL ALEXANDER: St. Pancras
CATCHER
Jack Flint, and a bunch of other interchangable guys is what we have here. It was actually tough finding 10 catcher to put on this list as only 9 draft eligible catchers had a positive WPA.
1- JACK FLINT: Lubbock State- 3 time All-American (twice first team) catcher from Lubbock State is far and away the best catching prospect available and should get consideration for first overall. A .356 hitter as a 3 year starter who also has a little bit of pop in his bat.
2- CLEM BLISS: Syracuse HS- A poor senior season- in comparison to his production the first two years- hurts Bliss but even his 1930 slash line of .275/.397/.451 is better than the career mark of any other catcher not named Flint in the draft pool.
3- WALTER SMITH: Little Rock HS- Like Bliss, his numbers dropped each of his three high school seasons. Is he the 15 year old who hit .344 or the 17 year old who hit .283? He is a winner as he helped Little Rock to a national title this past season. There are also some questions about his arm as he thew out just 24% of base stealers in his high school career.
4- MORT SMITH: Greensboro HS - A real gamble here but it could pay off huge. The defense is certainly there, as he threw out over 50% of base stealers as a senior. I would have ranked him 2nd behind only Flint a year ago when he hit .358 but Smith batted just .212 this season. If he can hit like he did as a junior he will be a great pick, if not well I think he has the defensive abilities to be a backup in the majors.
5- JEFF ROSE: St Blane College- An up and down career for Rose with OPS+ numbers of 168 as a freshman at St Blane, just 64 his sophomore season but a respectable (at least for this draft class) 86 last year. Made great strides with his throwing arm and cutting down on passed balls this season but I think there are going to be a lot of questions about his defense.
6- SOLLY WILLIAMS: Wilkes-Barre HS
7- A.J. WARREN: Oakland HS
8- DON EARLY: Sacramento HS
9- HARRY DUDLEY: Norfolk HS
10-RUSTY STANLEY: Garden State
FIRST BASE
1- JIM WRIGHT : Chicago Poly - Was a second team All-American as a freshman, at catcher, but lists as a 1B in this draft pool. Actually played more at catcher than 1B in his career and while his offense makes him barely average as a first baseman he could be worth a first round pick if he can catch in the big leagues.
2- GLENN THOMPSON: Opelika State- For some reason Thompson did not start much as a junior for the Wildcats, despite hitting .438 in 100 plate appearances this season. Did start last year and slashed .321/.382/.560 in 44 games. He also played a bit of center field, although not very well. This pool is so weak I am inclined to think he might just have first round potential.
3- JACK BURR: Opelika State- Started at 1B for Wildcats ahead of Thompson this year. Thompson had far better numbers but Burr's are not bad for this draft class...career slash line of .286/.339/.408.
4- WALLY RICE: Boulder State: Three year starter was only a .248 career hitter but among the homerun leaders in the draft class with 18. Can't see him making the big leagues, but I can say the same about 98% of this draft class.
5- JOHN ANDREWS: Dickson College - Started as a freshman and was a pitcher his sophomore season. Only started 4 games as a junior but this draft class sucks so I will say his 12 career homers and 135 career OPS+ make him one of the better first baseman in this class which was entirely a statement on the weakness of this pool rather than the ability of Andrews.
6- BOB REED: Grafton College
7- FRED MILLER: Pierpont
8- RED MULLINS: Syracuse HS
9-JOE GARLAND: Sadler College
10-HAL COLLETT: Greensboro HS
SECOND BASE
1- DOC LITTLEFIELD: Travis College- Tremendous defense from the three year starter. He also has a career .307/.363/.404 slash line. If you compare him to the premier second basemen from last years draft (Sam Orr and Jake Shadoan) he falls way short, but in this class he is worthy of a first round selection.
2- HEINIE DUNN: Elmira HS - He has actually played a lot more games in centerfield than at second base but does not look out of place at either position. Only started two season but improved this year over first season numbers. No power, but stole 25 bases in his career. If he can cut down on his strikeouts perhaps he could be a solid lead-off man.
3- HIRAM MARTIN: Wichita HS - Outstanding defense without a question but can he hit enough to play everyday? Showed a bit of pop this year with 5 homers for his high school club but just a .251 career hitter.
4- CLARENCE HOWELL: Detroit City College- Really improved his defense this season. A 3 year starter but his offensive production dipped each season.
5- TOM DOBSON: Omaha HS- Strong defender slashed .262/.337/.366 for his high school career.
6- CHARLIE JOSEPH: Holyoke HS
7- GEORGE ROBINSON: Garden State
8- PRYOR WNEK: Grafton College
9- TOM WELLS: Brooklyn HS
10- FRANK JONES: Nashville HS
SHORTSTOP
Finally a position with some talent depth. There are probably a dozen high school shortstops deserving of making this list and a half dozen that potentially could go in the first round.
1- LEE PORTER: Nashville HS- Looks to be almost everything you could want in a shortstop. Tremendous range and zone rating, Stole 45 bases in 122 games while slashing .311/.373/.395 in his three season and the best news he is one of the few top prospects who had a great draft year- establishing career bests in all 3 slash categories. Only thing he seems to be lacking his power.
2- OTTO DEAL: Meridian HS - Outstanding with the glove all 3 seasons of high school ball but there is some concern because his offensive production declined through the years. His defense is so good though, it is well worth risking a first round pick that he might just be the real Deal.
3- JOE NELSON: George Fox Univ - The top college shortstop has had two very strong defensive seasons. His offense dipped a bit this year but he is a .284 career hitter in college and stole 43 bases in 150 games.
4- CHARLIE REED: Berkeley HS - Made great strides to improve his defense this season but it is still only about average. He was pretty consistent at the plate in his 3 years at Berkely High School, slashing .302/.424/.450 with some speed (29 SB) and a little bit of power (10 HR in 120 games).
5- MILT STORY: Buffalo HS - Elite offense his first two seasons at Buffalo HS but, like so many others, he slumped in his draft year. Still finished with a .338/.366/.503 high school slash line. Defense needs work though. Perhaps 2B might be his final destination.
5-
6-BOLIVAR JIM SMITH: Cumberland
7- JIM BEARD: Lynn HS
8- HAL WAGNER: ELmira HS
9- CHUCK CARRUTHERS: Somerville HS
10-TOM HANDY: Mobile HS
THIRD BASE
1- JOHNNY TURNER: George Fox Univ- First team All-American selection this season, Turner followed up a strong sophomore season with a very good draft year, slashing .384/.440/.594. Seems to be a certain first round pick.
2- TOM EGGLETON: New Orleans HS - Two way player did not fare too badly as a pitcher but future likely as a hitter. Had 11 homers and hit .316 in 85 career games.
3- JIM AIELLO: Birmingham HS- A separated shoulder cut his draft year short but slashed .308/.345/.476 over his high school career. Has a baseball pedigree as his father played briefly in FABL and his brother Tom is a catcher in the Brooklyn Kings organization.
4- ELIAS BRADLEY: High Point HS- Seems to have a bit of power potential as he hit 9 homers in his draft year and 21 over 3 seasons at High Point HS.
5- EMIL BIGGS: Coastal California- Had a dreadful sophomore year but was much improved this season when he hit .307. 17 homers in 150 games and a .283 career average.
6- JACK WHITE: Nashville HS
7- PADDY HARRIS: Brooklyn State
8- FRED GRAY: Sadler College
9- STU DICKSON: Trenton HS
10-BOB PAUL: Meridian HS
PITCHER
There are a number of high school pitchers that certainly warrant a look very high in the draft. The concern I have is the unpredictability of high school arms and the two best of the group have regressed rather than improved in their 3 years of high school ball. There is a good chance one of the names below will become a stud but there is likely an even better chance that most of the guys listed here will bust. It is up to the general manager's to find the diamond in this mess.
1- DONNIE SCHEUERMANN: North Carolina Tech- One thing I can say for sure is that Donnie Scheuermann won't be the best pitcher in this draft class, but I think he is the safest pick. He looked pretty consistent over his 3 years with the Techsters, compiling a 19-11 record with a 2.84 era. He gives up a few too many homers for my liking, but it's not an unreasonably high total. His ERA+ has been consistent. I think he is a decent bottom of the rotation guy. He won't wow anyone but he is a safe late first round or second round pick in this draft, and you can't say the words "safe pick" about any of the other pitchers I will list after him.
2- MEL ENNIS: San Antonio HS- Probably the biggest question mark in this draft is where does Mel Ennis fit in? Ennis, you may recall, was outstanding as a 16 year old. He went 8-0 with a 0.59 era in leading San Antonio HS to a national prep championship. The next season he pitched entirely out of the bullpen for some reason, and while he did start this past season he was decent but not at the level of his freshman year. Two years ago I would have pegged him number one overall in his draft class. Now, I am not sure if he is even a first round pick. He could very easily never progress above AA ball, but he also could become a dominant pitcher?
3- FRANK KELLY: Knoxville HS - Kelly is in almost the same situation as Ennis but I would call him a much bigger risk. In 1928 as a 15 year old he went 8-2 with a 1.41 era, fanned 141 while walking just 15 and had an ERA+ of 312 and a WAR of 5.2. So what did he do for an encore in 1929. Nothing...literally nothing. He was not hurt but he did not pitch to a single batter that season. No idea why. This past season he was back pitching but mainly out of the pen and he was very ineffective, posting a 6.85 era and a 57 ERA+ while walking nearly twice the number of hitters he did 2 seasons earlier in half as many innings. I am listing him at #3 here because I think some GM will take a chance on him early, and it might not be a bad move considering how weak this class looks.
4- IKE JOYAL: Wikes-Barre HS - Joyal has some pretty decent numbers, even when you exclude his outstanding junior season of high school ball. Great career WHIP, K/9 and K/BB ratios are very good. Looks like a great pick but in his own way he might be as risky as Ennis or Kelly. Look at his injury history. Nothing long term yet but with that many nagging arm problems already his health scares me.
5- DICK SMITH: Richmond HS - Very consistent 3 seasons of high school ball and pitched for a National Champion in 1929. And he is lefthanded. Maybe not the upside of the 3 high school arms ahead of him but looks to have some real potential.
6- BILL ROSS: Providence HS
7- KARL MOORE: Rainier College
8- ERNIE SCOTT: Chicago Poly
9- OWEN JACKSON: Holyoke HS
10-LEW SPRULL: Louisville HS
Up next will be the a mock first round.